Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2009-10: Anthony Stolarz skated for the New Jersey Devils Youth Midget National U16 team and was one of ten Atlantic District goalies chosen for the Liberty Bell Games. He also played in USA Hockey’s Select 16 Festival. In 19 games with the Devils he had a 2.36 goals against and .926 save percentage.

2010-11: Stolarz shared the goaltending duties for the Empire Junior Hockey League’s Jersey Hitmen with Kyle Shapiro. He finished with a 10-4 mark and had a 3.19 goals against and .902 save percentage. The Hitmen finished sixth in the West Conference. Appearing in 3 of 7 playoff games, Stolarz was 1-2 and had a 3.13 goals against and .908 save percentage.

2011-12: Stolarz played in 50 of 60 games for the North American Hockey League’s Corpus Christi IceRays. He finished 23-26 with three shutouts and had a 2.84 goals against and .920 save percentage. Corpus Christi missed the NAHL playoffs – finishing two points behind fourth-place Odessa in the South Division for the final spot. Stolarz committed to playing college hockey at Nebraska-Omaha in 2012-13. He was invited to the NHL Draft Combine and ranked fourth amongst North American goalies in Central Scouting’s final rankings (up from 20th in the mid-term rankings) prior to the 2012 NHL Draft.

2012-13: Stolarz appeared in eight games for the University of Nebraska-Omaha as a freshman — leaving the Mavericks’ program in January to skate for the OHL’s London Knights. With senior John Faulkner handling the bulk of the goaltending for UN-O, Stolarz was 2-5 with a 2.56 goals against and .898 save percentage before heading to London. Splitting time with Jake Patterson, Stolarz was 13-3-2 with 1 shutout and had a 2.29 goals against and .920 save percentage in 20 games with the league’s top team. He was in net for most of the playoffs before yielding to Patterson in the finals against Barrie. Stolarz was 13-5 with 1 shutout in 18 playoff games and had a 2.53 goals against and .923 save percentage. He played in three games at the Memorial Cup and was 1-1 with a 4.50 goals against and .872 save percentage. Stolarz signed a three-year entry-level contract with Philadelphia in March 2014.

2013-14: Stolarz attended Flyers camp before returning to the OHL for his first full season with London. He skated in 35 regular season games for London; missing six weeks after being cut by a skate blade in a January game against Saginaw. He was 25-5-1 with four shutouts and had a 2.52 goals against and .926 save percentage. London finished third in the Midwest Division, advancing to the second round in the OHL playoffs, and participated in the Memorial Cup as the host team. Stolarz started three OHL playoff games — with Jake Patterson handling the bulk of the goaltending — and was 3-0 with a 2.00 goals against average and .933 save percentage. Stolarz played in three games at the Memorial Cup and was 0-3 with a 3.49 goals against and .907 save percentage.

2014-15: Stolarz played in 31 games for Flyers’ AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley in his first pro season. He was 9-13-0 with two shutouts and had a 3.28 goals against and .905 save percentage. The Phantoms finished fourth in the East Division, missing the AHL playoffs.

2015-16: Stolarz handled the bulk of the goaltending duties for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, appearing in 47 of 76 games in his second AHL season. He was 21-18-7 and had a 2.60 goals against and .916 save percentage. The Phantoms finished seventh in the Atlantic Division, missing the AHL playoffs. Stolarz was briefly called up by the Flyers in mid-season but did not appear in any games.

Talent Analysis

Stolarz is a butterfly goaltender. He uses his 6-foot-5 frame to makes good use of his size in limiting the choices of shooters, and he isn't afraid to challenge them. Stolarz generally plays a good positional game that doesn't leave many options for an opposing shooter. But the goaltender needs to develop in several areas, including his post-to-post coverage.

Future

Stolarz took over the starter's role for Flyers' AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley in 2015-16 after backing up veteran Rob Zepp in his first season with the Phantoms. A big goalie who uses his size to advantage and has steadily improved his tactical game, he could challenge for the backup role in Philadelphia in training camp.

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Photo: Lehigh Valley Phantoms goaltender and Philadelphia Flyers prospect Anthony Stolarz is ranked in the top 10 in minutes played by AHL goaltenders in the 2015-16 season (courtesy of Nina Weiss/THN)

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Photo: Washington Capitals defensive prospect Madison Bowey received some playing time with the NHL club during the 2015 NHL preseason, but will start his pro career in the AHL with the Hershey Bears (courtesy of Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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